Pork Tenderloin Medallions with Lemon-Mustard Sauce

by Melissa on July 30, 2008

This recipe is another one from I-village.com. All I can say about this dish, is that it is fabulous. The pork turns out very moist and flavorful, and the sauce is phenomenal. This recipe will be in our regular rotation for sure. The only thing I would do differently next time would be to decrease the pepper in the rub slightly as it was a little strong for me. Nate thought it was perfect, but my theory is you can always add more pepper. I only made one tenderloin, but made the full amount of rub and sauce, I would recommend doubling those for 2 tenderloins. We had the pork with sugar-snap peas and shallots.

Cut off any scrawny tail ends from the tenderloins. Slice each tenderloin into 6 equal rounds. Pound the medallions lightly with a meat mallet or rolling pin to 1 inch in thickness. Mix together the mustard rub ingredients. Coat the medallions with the rub. I let them sit in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. Let sit uncovered at room temperature while the grill heats.

Fire up the grill for a two-level fire capable of cooking first on high heat (meaning you can hold your hand 4 inches above the grill grate for only 1 to 2 seconds) and then on medium heat (you can hold your hand 4 inches above the grill grate for 4 to 5 seconds).

Make the sauce, first melting the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook until soft and beginning to color, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken stock and mustard, and continue cooking until reduced by about one half. Stir in the lemon juice, parsley and salt to taste. Keep the sauce warm.

Transfer the pork medallions to the grill over high heat. Grill for about 2 minutes per side. Move to medium, rotating the medallions a half-turn for crisscross grill marks. Continue cooking for 3 to 4 minutes more per side, until the medallions’ internal temperature reaches 155 degrees F to 160 degrees F. If any of the medallions begins to look dry, drizzle a bit of the sauce over it. Pool the sauce on individual plates and serve 1 or 2 medallions to a portion.

Great recipe. Tried it tonight and the family loved it. I found the rub mixture in the amount specified in the recipe to be enough for only about half the stated amount of pork tenderloin. In that proportion of rub to meat, the 2 tsp of coarse salt in the rub recipe is better reduced to 1 tsp. Also, if you use chicken broth instead of stock, I’d omit all salt from the sauce.